American Dirt, by Jeanine Cummins

Recently my book club chose Jeanine Cummins’s novel, American Dirt. I didn’t know anything about the novel, except it was an Oprah’s Book Club book. I listened to the sample on Audible and wasn’t sure what I would think about the novel. As I listened, the opening scene was full of action, and I knew it was probably worth the 1 credit. I wanted to attend the next book club meeting, so I downloaded it. Listening has its perks because a narrator can really give a story life, but it has its disadvantages because you can’t see the grammatical structure. I was a little confused sometimes about who was speaking since one moment we are in Luca’s head and the next in Lydia’s. I’m used to one or two points of view, but this book had many POVs and that was different than the norm. However, this didn’t distract from the amazing story being told. When I went to search about the author and why the POV was different, I saw all the political statements being tossed around and chose to ignore them. Fiction is fiction, and good fiction is sometimes hard to find. I enjoyed this realistic story that brought light to the plights of immigrants, the danger they are fleeing from, and the incredible risks they take making the journey across closed boarders. All politics aside, no matter what side you stand on, this is an amazing novel about a woman who loves her child and will do anything to protect and bring him to safety. I really enjoyed the book and hope others will enjoy it too.